During the Spring Festival holiday, robots frequently appeared in shopping malls, temple fairs, and corporate events. As commercial performance demand surged, the robot rental market heated up, with first-tier rental service providers also earning modest profits during this period. On February 26, a robot rental service platform, Qingtianzu, reported that orders during the Spring Festival holiday (from the first to the seventh day of the lunar new year) increased by nearly 70% compared to the previous period. Not only did platform orders grow, but rental transaction volumes through e-commerce channels also rose. According to JD.com's consumer trend data, starting from January 2026, transaction volume for JD.com’s self-operated robot rental business grew by over 100% month-on-month. Popular models, including various robots and robotic dogs, were in short supply, with many orders scheduled as far as mid-March.

In 2026, robot rental prices have decreased significantly compared to the same period last year, when daily rates for a single unit approached 10,000 yuan, making the experience more accessible. At JD.com’s self-operated flagship rental store, daily rates for mainstream robotic dogs such as the YuShu Go2-X, Go2-Pro, ZhiYuan D1 Pro, and YunShenChu JueYing Lite3 start as low as 78 yuan. Meanwhile, daily rental rates for humanoid robots like the YuShu U1 and ZhiYuan LingXi X2 (including on-site engineer services) begin at 1,796 yuan.

Industry insiders point out that the current rental boom is closely linked to increased exposure during the Spring Festival Gala and concentrated holiday demand. Whether this trend is sustainable will depend on performance data during regular periods outside of holidays. Currently, revenue is primarily driven by performances, events, and exhibition scenarios. The real challenge lies in identifying what additional value humanoid robots can offer customers after the Spring Festival Gala concludes.